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A National Institutes of Health Consensus Conference recently advocated lowering the serum cholesterol levels required to diagnose moderate and severe hypercholesterolemia. We reviewed 998 active duty United States Navy personnel who underwent routine physical examinations with determinations of serum cholesterol. Analysis of the data revealed a gradual rise in mean serum cholesterol with increasing age. Moderate elevation of serum cholesterol ranged from 11.3% to 34.6% of the study group, depending on age. Severe hypercholesterolemia was also age dependent and occurred in 2.0% to 9.3% the group. Dietary and cholesterol-binding agents have been shown to reduce the occurrence of myocardial infarction in subjects with cholesterol greater than 265 mg/dl. The incidence of Navy personnel with serum cholesterol above this level ranged from 2 to 10%. It is likely that intervention with dietary or medical therapy would prevent the development or delay the occurrence of coronary artery disease in a large number of active duty U.S. Navy personnel.

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